April 11, 1984: Shuttle Makes House Call, Repairs Satellite

1984: Shuttle astronauts retrieve the malfunctioning Solar Max astronomy satellite, fix it and send it back into orbit. It’s the first time a satellite has been repaired in space.

The Solar Maximum mission had been launched Feb. 14, 1980. But it was having trouble with its altitude-control system, and the electronics in the coronagraph instrument were wonky.

Space shuttle Challenger launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on mission STS-41C on April 6. Five days later, astronauts George Nelson and James van Hoften used the Remote Manipulator System robot arm to retrieve the buggy satellite from orbit and attach it to a workbench in the aft end of the Challenger‘s open cargo bay.

The Challenger flew four more successful missions in 1984 and 1985, before its 10th and final flight Jan. 28, 1986, when it was blown apart 73 seconds after launch, killing its crew of seven.

Source: NASA, various

Photo: Astronaut George Nelson (lower right of center, seen from above and behind his head) tries to capture the damaged Solar Max satellite, navigating himself with his bulky Manned Maneuvering Unit backpack. This approach didn’t work, because a grommet that wasn’t specified in the satellite’s blueprints got in the way. The shuttle’s robot arm did the trick later. (Courtesy NASA)